Head Above Water
by singmetothesun
Summary: Life is sweet, perfect even, for Albus and Scorpius. Both on track within their favoured professions, living together in London, pretty solid financially, and have a bucket list of things to achieve (well, Scorpius does anyway). Oh, and they're also planning their wedding. What could possibly go wrong?
1. Chapter 1

**HEAD ABOVE WATER  
a Harry Potter story by RoRo-Weasley  
**

* * *

_Bang!_

The curse missed him by inches as he dived to the right, instinctively covering his head to avoid flying debris from whatever part of the wall had just blown apart. He rolled, aiming a stunning spell at the attacker before ducking behind a desk, but the curses kept flying; his shot had missed. Again.

He needed to move, get back out in the open. Getting himself cornered was a stupid mistake, one his father would definitely berate him for if he ever found out. Whoever this was had come prepared, anti-apparition jinxes stopped any of them from escaping, stopped them from _moving_ unless it was on foot, and the Fiendfyre proved impossible to put out with any counteractive spells.

So many deaths.

They were in trouble.

He had to keep moving. Crawling along on hands and knees, keeping the desks and filing cabinets in front of him as cover, he made for the direction of the door, shooting stunning, disarming, and blasting spells to help clear his path and obstruct whoever was after him. He couldn't see the attacker, only the sounds of footsteps over the wooden floor and the shrills of spells flying in his direction were his only indication.

His heart pounding in his ears, he saw an opening and took it, sprinting as fast as his legs could carry him, out of the office and into the open, heading for the tree-line.

He reached its safety, resting against a trunk and catching his breath for as long as he dared. Taking a quick note of his condition, he surmised that he was covered in shrapnel grazes and mild burns, and blood was pouring from the gash in his forearm. He was panting heavily, adrenaline coursing through his veins. There was a bright blue flash, another blast, and a fir tree ten feet away from him splintered and began to fall. He ran off again, zig-zagging and using the trees as cover, occasionally ducking out to shoot back defensive spells.

Then the world turned upside down as his foot caught a root and he tumbled, landing hard on his injured arm and he cried out, twigs and bits of forest floor burying themselves into the wound. He went to roll over, to take in his situation, but it was too late. They had him. He was disarmed, his wand having flown who knew which way upon falling head over heels. He was helpless. There was the sound of laughter, pure maniacal laughter, and a chill ran down his spine as he thought he recognised it.

He could only think of one thing now. The face swam before him in his mind's eye, clear as day, the one person he loved more than anything. He whispered he was sorry.

A split-second searing pain slashed across his back before everything went black.

**# # #**

* * *

The first thing Albus registered when he awoke was the glorious blend of coffee and bacon. Squinting at the daylight pouring through the French windows, he ungraciously rolled over onto the empty side of the king-size bed, inhaling the cinnamon and peppermint-infused scent of his missing fiancé with a smile.

He was by no means a morning person. Back at Hogwarts, it would fall to Scorpius to wake him up or else he would miss the first class of the day - breakfast was basically a forgotten affair. Scorpius too, ever full of imagination from all those books he read, consistently came up with creative ways in achieving this, and Albus had found it fun to simply wait once awake just to see what Scorpius would hit him with. The best ever was probably the exploding pillow, he'd been picking bits of glitter out of his hair for days.

Deciding his need for coffee was greater than his desire to stay under the covers, he dragged himself out of bed, pulling on some socks and stretching before heading towards the bedroom door. There was a soft noise and a mound of fur curled itself around his ankles. Albus grinned, bending down to scoop up the cat, who nuzzled against his neck and purred as he stroked her tabby coat.

Ignotus had come to them as a joint graduation and house-warming gift picked out and named by Scorpius. Albus had a bit of a love/hate relationship with Iggy, but the cat seemed to always love him no matter what, something that then just made Albus fall for her more. Scorpius put it down to his affinity with animals – he was a Magizoologist after all. Albus refrained from making the point that, yes he was a Magizoologist-in-training, but cats were hardly magical beasts. Iggy fit well within their little family though, having a stumpy tail, mismatched eyes, and the odd patch of rare white fur, she was arguably a bit of a loser among her kind, like him and Scorpius.

Iggy jumped down from his arms after the brief morning greeting, stretching her front legs forward and leaning back on her hind legs, remarkably like a balasana yoga pose and he chuckled. Scorpius had taken up yoga to help get him into shape for Quidditch back in their sixth year and Albus had had many different poses demonstrated to him in their dormitory or down in the grounds by the lake. The damn cat really was meant to be in their family.

As she settled herself on the bed Albus headed out the room, along the corridor and down the three steps into the kitchen-diner-sitting area. Scorpius was busying himself about the kitchen, half-dressed in his Healer robes, singing away to himself and evidently having no idea Albus was watching him with a fond look on his face.

The blond twirled on one foot, his wand brandished above his head, before his eyes met his fiancé's and he jumped a full four feet backwards.

"Albus!" he exclaimed, a little too surprised to see his fiancé out of bed so early. The real reason became apparent, however, as there came a _bang _from the direction of the bedroom and Ignotus came careening across the tiled floor.

Covered in multi-coloured glitter.

Albus fixed Scorpius an incredulous look before guffawing with laughter, having to bend double before collapsing to the floor, unable to control the fit of pure mirth. Iggy came and settled on his chest, apparently seeking comfort, but upon Albus stroking her and his hand coming away spotted with bright colours, he only giggled louder.

There was some clattering noises as Scorpius assumedly finished off the breakfast and setting the table, as Albus took some deep breaths in an attempt to get some oxygen back into his lungs. He sat up slowly, not wanting to disturb Iggy, but the cat seemed to be clinging to him anyway, keeping herself curled up in his lap. It was only then he realised she was hissing and one look upwards to where Scorpius was now stood above him told him everything.

The Healer was pouting.

"Apparently she knows Mummy is to blame," Albus hiccoughed. Ignotus rolled over in his lap, covering his thighs and the surrounding floor in more glitter, purring in a way that clearly said Albus was the designated favourite that day.

Scorpius knelt down beside them. "Come on, Iggy, I don't even get a cuddle before I head off to work for the day? I wasn't aiming to scare _you_, that was for Albus and you just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."

It was the wrong thing to say. Iggy didn't attack, instead opting to ignore Scorpius completely, continuing to roll around playfully in Albus' lap.

"Lost cause I think, mate, sorry," Albus said. Scorpius just fixed him and the cat with his puppy eyes and pout once more. "What was the need in waking me up anyway? We don't have to be up early for lessons anymore, and haven't needed to be for three years."

"Well, you don't," Scorpius replied, giving him a look of indignation. "Not all of us can just wander into work when we feel like it."

"Hey," he countered gently, giving Iggy a little nudge telling her he was going to stand up. She let him, continuing to weave around his ankles. Albus held his arms out to his fiancé, who took them and let him help him up, before pecking him on the lips and embracing him tightly. Scorpius sighed, melting into him.

"I'm sorry," Scorpius said, burying his head into Albus' shoulder. "Someone got out of bed on the wrong side today."

"Pretty sure you didn't else you would have crushed me."

Scorpius giggled and it made Albus' heart soar. He withdrew from the hug, moving to cup the pale cheeks with his hands, gently stroking his thumbs across them.

"Just because I don't have a strict work schedule doesn't mean I don't care, you know." His voice was soft, a whisper, full of love.

"I know. I'm- Sorry, Albus, I-"

"You knew the exploding pillow was my favourite. It was brilliant." Scorpius smiled brightly in response and Albus crashed their lips together, kissing both fiercely and gently. His fiancé responded eagerly and Albus let himself be hoisted up, wrapping his legs around Scorpius' waist in response to the hands that requested Albus be closer to his own height.

Albus smiled against his lips as Scorpius began to walk them, but he was a little too wrapped up in the moment, his heart racing and his senses going wild, to really notice and so when his behind hit something solid he yelped. Overcoming the mini heart attack that caused, it was his turn to pout at Scorpius, who stood laughing at him. Albus was now plonked on the counter beside the coffee machine.

"As fun as this is, we really need to eat breakfast because I need to get to work," Scorpius said, a little breathless.

Albus nodded, his hands shooting out towards a mug. "Coffee was the whole reason I got out of bed, gimme."

"Not because you woke up and missed me? I'm heartbroken." Scorpius said, passing him the mug anyway. His smile didn't quite reach his eyes though, and Albus caught his wrist with his free hand and interlocked their fingers. Scorp's engagement ring momentarily caught the light and the silver shone like diamond. He brought it up to his lips and kissed it - he had a very good idea of what was making his fiancé so anxious.

"You do know that I love you, right?"

Scorpius looked at him. "Of course I do! And I love you too, Albus."

"So what's bothering you?" He set aside the mug and hopped down from the counter, still holding Scorp's hand and pulled him over to the table. "Sit, eat, and talk."

"Albuuuus," Scorpius whined but defeated as he sank down into the chair the Magizoologist pulled out for him. The bacon sandwiches were no doubt cold by now after the glitter interruption, but making Scorpius eat breakfast would give his hands something to do as well as help set him up for his work day. Albus stood behind him and looped his arms around the Healer's neck, resting his chin against his soft blond hair in a show of comfort and safety. Scorpius deflated and picked up his sandwich, leaning back into Albus' embrace.

"We have that meeting tonight. That's what's making you all nervous," Albus said softly.

His fiancé sighed again. "It's not about the meeting, Albus."

"The wedding," he supplied. He'd suspected as much, but the prospect of the planning meeting later that day at the Potter's must have triggered a cycle of self-doubt in Scorpius.

Scorpius was quiet as he continued chewing. Albus didn't let go of him, waiting for the love of his life to start talking. It was better to let Scorpius get everything out, especially if he had a full day's work ahead of him else he'd be much more likely to make mistakes, and that would only cause him to spiral further.

"Why are we doing this, Albus? Why are _you_ doing this? What do you even see in me?"

Albus' heart dropped to the floor, not quite breaking, but cracked and wounded on his fiancé's behalf. Scorpius' line of thinking was that he didn't deserve Albus, didn't deserve to be loved, didn't deserve to be happy. Albus only kissed his temple, running a hand through the platinum-blond hair. He wasn't going anywhere.

"You are the best person I know. You're kind, so thoughtful, brave."

"And you're not?" Albus interrupted. "Scorpius, if I didn't want to marry you I would have cleared off years ago."

"Why did you stay? Whatever made you fall for the son of Voldemort?"

"Scorpius Hyperion _Malfoy_," he emphasised. "For one, that is just disrespectful towards Draco, a man who is a much better father than my own. Two, you are _you_. You light up any room, you are so caring and kind towards everyone we know and _don't _know. You are my best friend, and I am having no one by my side for the rest of my life other than you."

"You mean that?" Scorpius' voice was soft, breaking slightly with all the emotion he was feeling.

Albus moved so he was looking Scorpius in the eye, one hand cupping his face. "I mean that, Scorpius." Then he kissed his cheek before stepping back and holding out his hand. In his mind's eye, he saw himself in the same position, wearing Gryffindor robes in the Hogwarts library. Scorpius looked at the hand, then at him, and the slight smile on his lips showed he too had seen the same thing. He took the hand and Albus half-pulled him up before they hugged, both once again on the same plane.

Scorpius was all but squishing him, but Albus only melted further into the embrace. They had been through everything together, Albus wasn't about to let that stop by not going through with the wedding. He also knew that Scorpius knew this, it was just his anxiety talking, he just needed that extra reassurance on the bad days to bring him out of it.

Scorpius released him, catching his face with his hands and kissed him with a force that took Albus' breath away. There was a swooping noise and Scorpius broke the kiss to catch his Healer robes, elegantly twisting on the spot as he pulled them on.

"Iggy!" Scorpius called, and the cat actually bounded up to him, obviously sensing the change in his mood and forgiving him for the earlier scare. He crouched down to catch her in his arms, nuzzling her as he stood up again, and laughing as he realised she was still covered in glitter. "I'm sorry dear girl, Mummy loves you lots and lots, yes she does!"

Ignotus purred happily and Albus couldn't help but grin stupidly at the sight of his fiancé cuddling their cat and becoming increasingly covered in bright multi-coloured spots.

"And Mummy has to go to work now, be good!" Scorpius let Iggy back down to the floor before flailing around the kitchen, waving his wand and trying to clean up and summon his work bag.

Albus touched his arm gently. "Scorp, go, I'll sort all this out."

Scorpius took a breath. "Right, yes, of course. Tergeo," he said, pointing his wand at his robes and clearing off the glitter. "I'll see you later, at your mum and dad's, yeah?"

"Yeah," Albus replied. "Your dad will be there too. I'll see you then, have a good day at work, I love you!"

Scorpius pecked him on the lips. "You too. I love you!"

Albus watched him head over to the fireplace, Iggy now circling his ankles again. His fiancé grabbed some floo powder from the pot and threw it down, his voice ringing out clearly, "St Mungo's!" He shot Albus one last wave and a bright smile, then he was gone.

Chewing on his lip, the middle Potter span around and headed back over to the kitchen area. His wand was still on the dressing table back in the bedroom, but he didn't bother retrieving it. Instead, he headed straight for the coffee machine. An Albus Potter without his morning dose of black caffeine was like a hangry Chimera.

Iggy was meowing at his feet and he bent down to stroke her again. "We need to get you cleaned up, don't we?" he mused, looking down at himself too. His shorts were still splattered with glitter where she'd been sat on his lap earlier, and although most of it was gone the odd bits still clung to her fur, making her sparkle in the sunlight that came streaming through the windows.

She started pawing at his knee, still meowing. He picked her up and she immediately began licking at his face, something she used to do knowing full well it annoyed him. Cat tongues were spiky and rough, and highly uncomfortable on human skin. Pulling a face at her, the coffee machine finished its whirring but as he went to reach out for the mug Iggy started hissing at him, digging her claws into his chest.

"Hey! Nah-ah, nothing is getting in the way of my coffee! Ignotus Malfoy-Potter!" He was now dealing with a feral. She was unrelenting, yelling at him and clawing at every bit of skin she could reach. He was yelling back, spitting out fur and glitter.

Then his stomach rumbled, and he felt like the worst human to ever exist.

Yes, he needed his coffee but a cat was also a living breathing thing that needed to eat too. Apparently, in his anxious state, Scorpius had forgotten her breakfast. No wonder she had been moody with him earlier, especially after the exploding pillow incident. And then she'd happily let him go knowing full well she would have Albus to annoy once he'd gone to work.

Albus forced himself to keep a calm demeanour. As soon as he mentioned the word food, Iggy immediately stopped her attack and began nuzzling his neck again. Shaking his head, Albus set about getting the cat food from the cupboard, finally able to grab his coffee.

As he sipped the beverage contentedly, watching Iggy devour her tuna, he took in the room and the splodges of floor covered in glitter. Making a face and rubbing a hand over his eyes, he decided that in that moment he hated that damn cat.


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

Oakhampton Sanctuary and Rehabilitation Centre for Magical Creatures, otherwise known as the OSRC, was a fifteen square-mile section of reclaimed land from the Dartmoor National Park in Devon. Warded from Muggles similar to Hogwarts, who simply knew the area as overrun with Asian longhorn beetles (vicious tree-destroying pests) and kept well away, the sanctuary had long had the necessary room to expand over the years. Initially founded by famed Magizoologist Newt Scamander back in the 1980s, the OSRC was kept alive through his occasional overseeing plus trustees. This included Albus' honorary Aunt Luna, who had been the one to suggest Albus work there after Hogwarts.

The entire area was an expanse of rolling hills and valleys, magnificent waterfalls and deep lakes, smaller paddocks and huge jungles under atmospheric charms, and all sorts of other habitats specifically created for the creatures that resided. There were apparition points for the workers to get around, a block of offices in the south-east corner, along with an array of other buildings scattered towards the west. Their purposes also varied, from changing rooms, medical centres, a cafeteria, and storehouses with files upon files of records.

As Albus exited the floo through one of the fireplaces in the main office block lobby, he was greeted by a voice and wave from the main desk. He greeted Peter back and went to get another coffee from the machine in the corner.

"I've clocked you in, Mr Potter! Mrs Dean wishes you to know you're a valued employee here and hopes you have a grand day!"

Albus chuckled. Peter said the same thing to every single person who passed him throughout the day. Their newest recruit, Peter was the same age as his sister, Lily. Fresh out of Hogwarts as of last summer, enthusiastic as hell about everything and anything, and stuck with admin duties while he began his training. He reminded Albus a lot of Scorpius, a constant ball of energy, except where he found Scorpius endearing, he found Peter rather overbearing.

"You know, you can call us by our first names, Peter, it's not a crime."

"Thanks but I really don't think so, Mr Potter. This is a professional environment and I need to assimilate myself, to stand me in the best stead of growing within this workplace."

"I hope you didn't say that in your interview," Albus mused, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall while the coffee finished dispensing.

Peter looked affronted. "Of course not, I'd never get hired here otherwise. You don't work somewhere like this, under someone like _Newt Scamander, _by having delusions of grandeur."

Albus picked up his second coffee of the day and sipped it. Caffeine could get him through anything. "You do know he's not actually our boss, just a trustee."

"But Newt Scamander, Mr Potter! He created this place. I was in the same House as his great-grandsons. Wait, don't you know them?"

"Honorary family. Lorcan and Lysander are fifth years, just about to do their OWLs. Their mum, Luna, is one of my dad's best friends. She pops by sometimes when she's not off on her travels."

"You mean, here?" he squeaked. "A member of Dumbledore's Army, comes _here_?"

Albus somehow managed to stop him from rolling his eyes. Scorpius would be proud of him. "Duh, she's a trustee. Don't lose your head over it though, she's away a _lot_. " And with that, he left the dumbstruck kid as he climbed the stairs to the floor where the main staff areas were. He laughed to himself again, shaking his head. The OSRC provided something extra that he had never considered before working there – nobody was bothered that he was the Slytherin son of Harry Potter.

He had definitely chosen the right profession.

Exchanging greetings with several colleagues who were already settled in their own spots, Albus checked his mail tray for memos from any other staff. Much like the paper plane inter-departmental memos used within the Ministry of Magic, the OSRC used the same system. They worked as quickly and efficiently as Muggle pagers, or so Scorpius said – St Mungo's used them too. If left for too long they would start hitting you in the nose until you read them. All that was there was his assignment for the day from Marta, his boss. Checking the huge enchanted map on the wall, that resembled the Marauder's Map so much Albus had had quite a shock on his first day, he saw Paul already with the Mooncalves out to the North.

There was a swooping noise and displaced air tickled his face as something fluffy and bright green flew past and circled him. The song in the air was known to drive some witches and wizards insane but to Albus, Elpis was an absolute sweetheart. Beaming, he watched her settle on her perch next to his desk, her song turned squawk which was her way of saying hello.

"Good morning to you too, my dear," he said, stroking her head. She was a ball of lime green fluff on wings, her head not really distinguishable from the rest of her, with darker antennae-looking tails protruding from her feathers from top to toe.

Elpis was a Fwooper and had been brought to the OSRC back when Albus was still at Hogwarts after getting hit by crossfire during an Auror raid. Severely injured and refusing any intervention by the Magizoologists, Marta Dean had told Albus upon his starting there that she was practically a hopeless case. To everyone's utter surprise, including Albus himself, Elpis immediately attached herself to him and would only do things with Albus' coaxing. It was remarkable, and so Elpis was assigned as Albus' sole case to focus on, meaning he was essentially removed from all newbie admin duties while he spent his time studying Elpis. Over the course of almost two years, Albus and Elpis were able to work to fully rehabilitate her, including her singing voice. With her previous owner in Azkaban, it was only natural to keep her around as the unofficial OSRC mascot.

Albus had rather quickly graduated from trainee as a result.

He sat down at his desk, which was one of only a few around the office. Desks were optional you see, and OSCR employees were encouraged to make their individual space like their own personal sanctuary. There were rumours that Newt Scamander had wanted to ban all office-related things upon setting up the place in the 80s, but it was essentially impossible, not when there were case studies to file and progress charts to keep. You still needed admin to ensure the place ran smoothly.

Albus' workspace was about 15-square-feet. As well as a desk and chair, filing drawers and trays, there was a sofa, some bean bags, a music stereo, pictures dotted about on the partitions (him and Scorpius, him and Elpis, him and his family, to name a few), quidditch posters, articles about creature discoveries his Aunt Luna had found and past issues of The Quibbler. On his desk was a small stack of paperwork containing notes about Healing charms and potions from St Mungo's, as well as atmospheric charm guides from the Ministry. A selection of Muggle fidget toys also lay there which were gifts from Scorpius, essentially bits of metal and plastic that you could occupy your hands with. Albus could definitely see the appeal.

He scribbled a note to Paul and sent it on its way, letting him know he was in and would be shortly on his way. With a flick of his wand the stereo hummed into life, a playlist Lily had helped him compile as a sort of morning chill-out atmosphere. Taking another sip of coffee, he seated himself down on one of the green beanbags, his eyes drifting to one of the many pictures of him and Scorpius and he smiled.

It was bonkers how they'd only known each other ten years. Half of their lives. And now they had the rest of it ahead of them. Together. They had somehow survived to this point, and it made Albus feel both warm and cold inside. When they were fourteen, he did some pretty stupid things, stupid and _dangerous_ things that almost resulted in the deaths of them both plus their families. Well, if you looked at it one way it _did_. Scorpius had never talked about it since that year but there was a period of time where he, Albus, nor the Potters existed. Neither did Rose and Hugo, as circumstances changed and their family wasn't the same. It had all been Albus' fault for thinking he had something to prove. He had never forgiven himself.

Somehow, Scorpius had stuck by his side. Through _everything_. Scorpius had said that morning that _he _didn't deserve Albus. He was so very wrong. The two of them were incredibly dim sometimes. They loved each other that deeply, they would fool themselves into believing anxiety over it. It seemed paradoxical but that was just them all over. Albus was marrying his best friend in a matter of months. It was going to be the best day ever.

He spent much of the day with their seven Mooncalves who were mostly to be found underground in their burrows. It was a Magizoologist's job to study their behaviour, look for abnormalities, and generally to provide them with what they needed to ensure they were well looked after. Bertie required eye drops twice an hour, and Krum, one of the younger ones, loved to play hide and seek. Only Lyra, their eldest, would dance during a full moon, and that was a beautiful sight to behold.

He was in the middle of a game with Krum when he heard his voice being called. It was Marta, his boss. She was in her mid-thirties, French, a graduate from Beauxbatons, and had run the OSRC for seven years. He quickly found Krum hiding behind some hay before heading back up to the surface to see what he was needed for. Marta wasn't known for making rounds just for fun, there was always a reason.

"Evening, Marta," he said brightly, consulting his watch. It was almost half-past five, meaning he was all well and good to clock off and head straight for his parents' house.

"Hello, Albus, how are they doing?" she replied, her English melded with a French accent just like his Aunt Fleur.

"Krum has made me play no less than forty-seven rounds of Hide and Seek and Heather hasn't been eating but she doesn't seem under the weather. I'll send my notes on to whoever is coming next."

"It'll be Anna, I'll let her know for you. Now, I came down here to ask a favour."

"I figured as much. I'll have a word with Peter if you need me to, my sister knew him at school so I'm sure I could-"

"I need you to stay later today. The Augureys have been crying and the Crups have a Chizpurfle infestation again."

Albus barely managed to stop himself from groaning aloud. "Have you contacted the Ministry? I thought the Pest Sub-Division took care of infestations?"

"Of course and they should be sending someone tomorrow. Do you have to be somewhere?" She looked at him in a way that heavily reminded him of his mum.

He relented, wishing he had one of Scorp's fidget toys as he started wringing his hands. "Well kind of, yes. I have a wedding planning meeting with my family. My fiancé and I are getting married in October, you know that."

"I'm happy for you, really, but you are needed here tonight."

"I know, but-"

"Albus, as much as the OSRC is flexible there are sometimes occasions that require us to step up. I really hope you won't let me down."

He debated with himself over whether to argue with her but with her current manner, there was every chance he would lose his job. He looked down at the floor and sighed. "No longer than two hours, alright? I will do anything, but I cannot stay past seven-thirty."

Marta grinned at him. "Excellent, I knew I could count on you!"

As she walked away to the apparition point, Albus got out his wand, concentrating on the day he proposed to Scorpius, and his Patronus burst forth. He gave it a message to deliver and watched it scamper out of sight.

As much as he'd said that he couldn't stay for more than two hours, he had a very uneasy feeling that it would be much longer. A Chizpurfle infestation could be dealt with, it was the Augureys crying that gave him the uneasy feeling, though it was probably down to word association. He said his farewells to the Mooncalves and headed over to the wooded-area in the West.

**#  
**

* * *

Scorpius took a deep breath before knocking three times upon the rosewood door. He could feel himself sweating and he dabbed his forehead with the sleeve of his coat, having changed out of his Healer robes before leaving St Mungo's. Rather than floo straight into the Potters' living room, he'd apparated over to a disused warehouse half a mile away and walked. Not that he hadn't flooed there before, he had, many times. Just this time felt a lot different, much like the time he'd wanted to ask Harry and Ginny for their blessing to marry Albus.

The door opened but before he could even comprehend who it was, he was being squeezed to within an inch of his life and his ears assaulted by high-pitched squealing.

"Scorpius!"

"Hello Lily!" he managed, staggering backwards and struggling to breathe. He was actually surprised to see her; she was supposed to be abroad.

"I knew you wouldn't floo, you're too predictable! Oh, it's so good to see you!"

"Let him breathe, Lily." At Ginny's soft scold he was released and he took a few gasping breaths and let out a few giggles. Lily was now standing in the doorway, her mum behind her. She was basically Ginny in miniature, the same brown eyes, Weasley hair (though there was also some of her paternal grandmother's shade in there too), and the same look of adoration on their faces.

Ginny moved to hug him and Scorpius melted into it. Although no one could ever replace his mother, Ginny came damn close sometimes. "Hi, Mrs Potter! How are you?"

She withdrew and smiled at him. "Scorpius, come now, is there ever going to come a time where you don't address me as Ginny first?"

He laughed nervously and Lily giggled. "Sorry, Ginny."

"No worries, come on in," she said, taking his coat as he slipped off his shoes. "I'm doing fine, thank you. Would you like some tea?" As he replied that he would, she led him into the lounge.

"Obviously Albus isn't here yet, but your dad is," Lily chirped, scampering off ahead.

There were three leather sofas and an armchair, a coffee table in the centre and an array of nibbles set out already - a prerequisite to dinner. A Muggle television set in the corner was playing a cartoon show, something Lily was no doubt watching before hearing him at the door, and a central fireplace that was covered in photo frames was the prominent feature in the room. It was cosy, much smaller than the Manor where he'd grown up, but it was something he'd always loved about coming here during the holidays in his teens.

The shaggy beige carpet was super soft beneath his feet as he crossed the room. His father was in the armchair, apparently, he too had been watching the television show with Lily, and that made Scorpius smile.

Upon seeing him, Draco Malfoy leapt up and embraced him warmly, and Scorpius grinned. There was a time not too long ago when Draco was a bit stiff when it came to affection, but over the years this had changed and he always looked forward to a hug from his dad.

"Has Perry foiled the plan yet, Draco?" Lily asked as she dived back onto a sofa with a glass of juice. Scorpius could swear she was still eleven years old sometimes.

"Yes, the Doofshirts man is no longer able to take over the world with his ThingyDoWhatsit-inator."

"It's Doofenshmirtz, Draco!" Harry Potter replied, coming out of the kitchen with a steaming mug in his hand. "Scorpius, hi, everything good?"

Scorpius shook his hand and nodded. "Mr Potter, ye-"

"Harry, Scorpius. I certainly think you should feel comfortable enough to be more informal around your future father-in-law by now?" He grinned before taking a sip of his tea and Scorpius smiled rather awkwardly back. It was still insane to think sometimes that this was _the _Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, who defeated Voldemort at just seventeen years old. And Scorpius was marrying his son. A Malfoy. Marrying a Potter. Names didn't really matter anymore but it still weirded Scorpius out sometimes. His mum would be very happy about everything. "So, how's your work going? Everything going well in the ward?"

"Yes! I'm technically still a Junior-in-Training until everything is finalised, they don't exactly rush paperwork over there and I guess there are more important things to deal with. We're supposed to have a passing out ceremony but apparently it's more of an informal tea and cake affair. I can't believe it's been three years already!"

"It's certainly odd knowing we won't be going back to Kings Cross again in September. Lily's already been out a whole year but it's still bizarre, you know? I did seven years and then ten years with my kids. Now it's all over, just like that. I suppose the next opportunity will be with the grandkids!"

Scorpius blushed and tried extremely hard to hide his face. He and Albus had never properly discussed children, only briefly smiling when it came up before one of them rapidly changed the subject. Marriage first, that was the most important thing to them at the moment, and even that was essentially trivial. Naturally, Albus' family and Draco had refuted their idea of just a simple ceremony somewhere quiet with minimal attendees. It wasn't the whole wedding thing that was the attraction, it was the whole concept of being able to spend the rest of their lives together as husbands – officially. They had been best friends, boyfriends, fiancés, for way too long. Being married, as husband and husband, as Malfoy-Potters, was the last thrill to bring things full circle. Boyfriend was too open-ended, husband was final, _eternal_.

A mug was being pushed into his hands by Ginny and it broke him from his thoughts. He took it and thanked her.

"I hope you're not embarrassing him, Harry, he's gone as red as my hair!"

"Gin, your hair isn't quite as red as it used to be," Harry quipped back and Scorpius laughed as Ginny cuffed him around the head. "Besides, I was being perfectly polite asking about his work at St Mungo's."

Ginny looked to Scorpius with an expression he was certain Albus, James, and Lily had all be subjected to over their lives. He quickly rambled that Harry was indeed telling the truth and Ginny kissed his cheek.

At that moment, Lily started singing loudly along to what Scorpius assumed was the theme tune to the show they were watching. To his utter shock, Harry started joining in.

"It's my favourite part," he whispered with a shrug, before moving over to sit with Lily on the sofa and Scorpius watched as the pair of them started not only singing but doing actions along to the music. Then he guffawed even more upon seeing his dad's expression. It wasn't just shock on Draco's face but also what Scorpius could only describe as disgust.

"Remind me again, Scorpius, why you wish to marry into this family?"

The laughter in the room was tuned out by the arrival of something large and silver that bounded through an open window to Ginny's right. It was a borzoi dog, shimmering beautifully as it tracked across the room before coming to a stop in front of Scorpius.

His stomach dropped. If Albus couldn't floo a message and had to send it by Patronus it only meant something serious.

The borzoi spoke in Albus' soft, sweet voice. _"Held up at work. I'll be there as soon as I can. I love you."_

Scorpius' eyes were fixed to the spot as it dissipated. A terrible feeling was swelling inside of him, clawing at him, and he sank down onto the arm of the nearest sofa. The mug slipped from his fingers and crashed to the floor. Chills. Knives. Fire.

All his oxygen disappeared. Breath caught in his throat.

The last time he had felt like this he had been just fourteen. Fourteen and alone in a reality where Albus no longer existed.

"Scorpius?"

It wasn't Umbridge's voice, he knew it wasn't, he knew he was safe. And yet, his lungs wouldn't let him respond. There were hands on his face, warm, soft hands, and the voices were gentle.

But he was falling and they couldn't catch him in time.


End file.
